Roads Taken
by potterheadXD
Summary: After a detention with Professor Snape reveals secrets Harry would prefer to keep hidden, who would have thought that Snape and Hermione would take it upon themselves to try and mend a hurting Harry Potter? And how does Draco come into all of this? Might have slash, haven't decided yet.
1. Chapter 1

Chapter One: Terror Revealed

'Oh, fuck!'

'Harry! Don't be crude!'

Harry Potter was glaring into his dark green potion – which wasn't the lime colour it should have been.

'Yes, Potter, don't be crude,' came a silky voice from behind him. Harry felt his heart drop. 'I see you have failed your potion... again. Tell me, do you enjoy failing miserably at near every potion you are given above first year skill? Or is it just your fathers complete idiocy coming through?'

Harry was silent.

'Detention, Mr Potter, at seven o'clock tonight. There are a few jobs around the school I need help with.'

Sighing, Harry stood back as Snape vanished the contents of his potion, glaring at the ground. He was more pleased than ever when he was dismissed.

'Honestly, why can't the greasy old bat look over that giant nose of his and see that I'm not that bad?' Harry fumed as he stalked out of the corridor. 'I'm not my fucking father, why can't he see that?'

Hermione merely raised her eyebrows.

'You need to control your tongue Harry; swearing is not charming. I'm going to have to give you another hair-cut, by the way, its growing so much lately!'

Harry ran his fingers through his now-greasy hair. Potions always turned his hair shiny and oily. He was surprised to find that his hair was past his ears again. But he didn't mind; he had a chance to get close to Hermione again. He was in love with the girl he had known for six years, but he had never acted on it because of Ron. Since Ron had basically told Harry to get on with it, he might have a chance. Then he groaned.

'Not tonight 'Mione, I've got detention with Snape.' He grimaced. 'Hurry, we have charms.' Grasping her soft, delicate hands, Harry whisked her off to charms, loving the feeling of her palm against his.

At two minutes to seven, Harry found himself outside Snapes office, steeling himself for whatever grisly punishment his Potions professor had thought up for him.

Knocking timidly on the door, it swung open to reveal Snape, a scowl on his face. Upon seeing Harry however, his expression melted into a smirk.

'Ah, Mr Potter,' he practically purred. 'This detention should prove very interesting indeed... for me, that is.'

His silky voice sent Harrys heart into his shoes.

'Uh, Sir?' He asked quietly.

'There's a boggart in one of the transfiguration classrooms, Mr Potter. As you are somewhat... experienced in defence against the dark arts, I thought I would get you to remove it for me.'

Harry stood there, frozen. Snape, know his worst fear? Not bloody likely!

'Excuse me, Mr Potter?' Snapes deadly voice said. Harry realised with a pang that he had said that out loud.

'Er, nothing sir, I said I'd be happy to help.'

His professors' lip curled. 'Then let us get going.' He stalked out into the corridor, robes billowing, Harry struggling to keep up.

As they rounded the last corner to the classroom, Harry was bent over gasping, his short legs aching from having to run to keep up with the older man. He was absolutely dreading this; he had no clue what his worst fear was anymore, and he didn't want to have Snape see it. Still, there was no way he was getting out of it now. Almost sick, he wanted to run, but Snape shoved him into the room before he could protest. Holding his breath, Harry looked at him in terror.

'No need to look so scared, Potter,' sneered Snape. 'It's just a boggart.'

Harry's attention was drawn to the rattling coming from the drawers in the desk at the front. His stomach was jumping up and down. Snape crossed to the front of the room.

'Shall I do the honours?'

Harry's throat was dry; not trusting himself to speak, he nodded, heart pounding.

Heart in his throat, he watched as the drawer was pulled open.

'Harry,' whispered the voice. His stomach dropped. It was Sirius.

'Harry,' it came again. 'You killed me. It was your fault; and now you can't even man up to acknowledge it. Pathetic. You disgust me; you can't even stand up to your own uncle. You deserve to feel pain Harry; it was you. It's your fault I'm dead. You-'

'No!' cried Harry, finding his voice. 'No! R-Ridiculous! Ridikulus!'

With a crack, Sirius was gone. In his place was Hermione.

'I'll never want you, Harry. You are just a fame-seeking little boy. You will never do anything to earn respect. Ron is so much better than you; at least he has a family. I hate yo-'

'Ridikulus!' Harry yelled, his eyes prickling, hearing his voice break in the middle. Suddenly the 16 year old Tom Riddle stood before him.

'I told you, Harry,' whispered the voice, holding Harrys gaze. 'You are just like me; I told you. We could be great together. You are powerful Harry; and you know deep down... you want it... the power, the fear... you want to cause pain; you have already started...'

And then, Harry gasped. Instead of Tom Riddle was a cupboard. His cupboard. It creaked open, revealing the cot, the red crayon on the wall saying 'Harry's room.' But then came his uncle.

'You worthless brat! We feed you and clothe you! You ungrateful bastard!' It was silence, and then his cupboard door creaked open, revealing an 11 year old Harry sitting on his cot. The real Harry found himself sitting down on the floor, and curled himself up. His uncle was coming; his uncle was going to hurt him and it was all his fault.

'I'm sorry Uncle!' He cried. 'I'm sorry! I won't do it again! No! Don't, please!'

'RIDIKULUS!'

Snape had seen enough. He crossed the room in two strides and bent down by the boy, putting a hand on his shoulder. When Harry cried out and flinched away from the touch, Snape grabbed him by both shoulders and pulled his chin up to look into the boys face.

'Potter. You are at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. I am Professor Snape. Potter. You are at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. I am Professor Snape.'

Harrys eyes opened and looked fearfully at the black-haired man in front of him, his breath catching in his throat, gasping for air. _Oh great, a panic attack,_ thought Snape.

'Potter,' Snape said. 'Breathe. Breathe with me. In, and out. In, and out. That's it.' Slowly, the boy returned to reality. His glazed eyes turned back to their vivid green.

The boy was trembling all over. _Panic Attacks? Oh dear god, the wizarding world is doomed. _Looking up to meet the Professors eyes, his eyes hardened, and he stood up so quickly that he nearly knocked Snape over.

'Is my detention finished, Professor?' He said, his voice colder than the Potions Master had ever heard it. It was quite startling actually. The older man eyed the youth with a curious gaze. He had potential; in fact, with a bit of practice the young man might be able to appear truly intimidating.

'Not quite, Potter,' he said, surprising himself. 'It has only been half an hour. I require one more job of you. There is a requirement to make calming draughts for the hospital wing, and I want to make sure there are enough.'

'Sir, you forgot I'm useless at potions,' came the flat reply. Snape snorted.

'Don't think I haven't noticed the potential, Potter. If you applied yourself, you could pass for adequate.'

Harry watched Snape warily. Praise? Well, as close to praise as Snape could get. Nodding slightly, he set off for the dungeons, Snape close on his heels.

It was just after 11 at night when Harry crawled in through the Portrait Hole. To his surprise, he found Hermione in front of the fire, waiting for him.

'Hermione,' he said. 'What are you doing?'

He smiled at him; he attempted to ignore the warm feeling spreading through his stomach.

'Waiting for you of course! I've been working on the transfiguration essay, you didn't really understand the thesis, so I made some notes that should help you understand. How was detention?'

Harry grinned at his best friend. 'Hermione, you have got to be one of the nicest people I know.' Hermione blushed at the blatant compliment. 'Detention was alright. He had me get rid of a boggart; it had me pretty rattled. I ended up in a full blown panic attack. The old bat was decent about it though. Didn't mention it afterwards. Then he had me do calming draughts.' He made a face. Hermione looked at him in concern before giving him a chaste hug. The girl shoved the bundle of notes at him.

'Come on, let's go, I'll have to give you a haircut tomorrow.'

Harry smiled and went to go up the stairs.

'Night Hermione,' he called. She grinned and waved at him.

The black-haired boy made his way up the stairs and into the dorm. He slowly began to take his clothes off, and when he was in his silk boxers climbed into the cold bed that felt empty. He sighed, and then he heard someone coming up the stairs.

Harry sat bolt upright in his bed and grabbed his wand. He pointed it at the door, and _stupefy _was on the end of his tongue when he saw a familiar head of hair.

'Hermione?' he whispered, to make sure. She grinned at him; she was clad in pyjama bottoms and a t-shirt.

'Scoot over,' she said quietly. He stared at her. 'Move!'

Harry hurriedly scurried over until half of his bed was available. He felt rather self conscious showing his body; of course, Hermione was the one person who had seen the belt scars and the bruises, but he was still rather self-conscious. His breath hitched in his throat when Hermione's warm body cuddled up to his. Rolling over, he turned to face her, so they were face to face. He breathed in her scent of vanilla and coffee. It intoxicated the boy, the scent creeping up his nostrils. She looked down, and traced her hand over the small scar on his abdomen. Harry's breath hitched in his throat at her touch. Hermione grasped his shoulder lightly, pulling it up, leaving her free to trace the tattoo over his upper back. She touched the edges of the golden phoenix wings, around the black snake and over the black eyes staring out of his back. She released his shoulder, leaving him free to roll back. He snaked his arm over her head, carding his fingers through his silky hair and nestling his face in the soft skin of her neck. She stretched her arm over his strong, defined chest, and moved her leg over his so that they were entwined, breathing in each other's scent, her hair in his face and arms around each other. Hermione closed her eyes, and Harry did too, both of them falling into a deep sleep.

Harry had no nightmares that night.


	2. Chapter 2

Chapter Two

Several nights after the detention with Potter, Severus Snape was sitting in his private quarters nursing a glass of firewhiskey, his thoughts on the young man himself.

_His boggart was quite unusual, _mused the potions master. _The appearance of the mutt showed he blames himself for the death; that's understandable. There appears to be a romance between him and the Granger girl – or, he hopes there could be one. Pity; she could do so much better than him. _Snape felt a pang go through him; she was Lily Potter, a smart muggle-born, being pursued by James Potter – or a life-sized clone of him. He snorted at the irony.

_But the cupboard... is he claustrophobic? Another weakness of our little golden boy, it seems, along with the fact he seems scared of his uncle – or it might have been a walrus, there doesn't seem to be much of a difference. But the Dark Lord... he doesn't want to end up like the dark lord. How on earth did he ever have that idea? The boy needs mental help. Still, the task failed; there's nothing I can use to embarrass him in class, unless I can summon his Uncle. Damnit. The mutt is dead, Tom Riddle – well, that's obviously impossible, and we don't have any cupboards in the – yes we do, the store cupboard! _

An evil grin crossed the tall man's face. He couldn't wait to see Potter scared in his class; he might even cry! This would be interesting...

On Monday morning, Harry and Hermione made their way down to the dungeons. Harry was feeling a little bit sick, but he had managed to convince Hermione that he didn't need to go to the Hospital Wing; god knows he spends enough time there as it is.

As he entered the Potions classroom, the fumes instantly made him nauseous. He took a seat near the back, and it wasn't long before the mass of black robes and grease that was Professor Snape billowed in through the doors. He cast a dirty look at the students, before flicking his wand at the board. Instructions chalked themselves up in white, loopy letters.

'Today we will be covering a deflating draught; taught in your fourth year, so I have no doubt many of you disgraces to wizard-kind will fail. Nevertheless, you have one hour. Partner up and begin.'

As Hermione made her way to the store-room, Harry grabbed her wrist.

'Hermione, I'm not incompetent just because I feel a bit sick. I'll get the ingredients.'

She sighed. 'One day your pride is going to hurt you, Harry James Potter.'

Biting back a smile, Harry stood up. Ignoring the slight wave going through his head he made his way to the stores room. It had always un-nerved him slightly; reminded him too much of his cupboard. But it was always light, it was larger and the door remained wide open. _Asphodel, Doxy Eggs, Lionfish Spine and Shrivelfig, _he thought, attempting to remember the list in his head. Stepping into the small room he nearly coughed on the musty air. He grabbed two jars and a Shrivelfig, but couldn't find the asphodel.

Harry whipped around at the scuff of a shoe.

'Paranoid, much?' came the familiar drawl of Draco Malfoy.

'Malfoy,' Harry said coolly.

_Click._

_Bang._

Harry was suddenly surrounded by nothing but darkness. He realised he had been closed in, the light turned off. His wand was back out there with Hermione. The black-haired boy felt his breath choke in his throat.

_It's okay,_ he thought. _Just find the door and unlock it. _Harry slowly made his way in front of him to where the door was. He felt the cool feeling of stone under his hand, and grasped the cold door handle, pulling it down.

It didn't move.

Gasping, Harry pulled it down again, hard. It refused to move. In fact, this wasn't really that much bigger than his cupboard. The roof was higher, yes, but it was thinner, smaller...

'LET ME OUT! LET ME OUT!' The young man screamed, smashing his fist against the wall. 'HELP! HELP ME I'M STUCK!'

He let out a blood-curdling scream when he heard the breathing behind him. He knew it; his uncle was in here, oh dear god, what had he done now? Another beating was coming this way, he was sure of it.

'I'm sorry uncle!' cried out the distressed boy. 'I'm sorry! Please don't hurt me! I'll be better sir, I promise!' Another scream. 'No! No sir! Please!' When the breath came closer Harry screamed, and screamed, and screamed, because he didn't think he could take another beating, it was just so painful, and he was scared he wouldn't make it.

Outside, Snape pretended to be absorbed in essays that he was marking. He gave no clue he was listening for noise from the potions cupboard. Draco had done well. Suddenly, the room was filled with a bloodcurdling scream from the Store room. Snape was actually surprised; he had expected the boy to be embarrassed, maybe cry a bit, but this... this was a scream of pure terror. The screams continued, and the Professor snapped out of his stupor to stalk over to the closed door, grasp the handle and yank it open. His mouth dropped at what he saw.

Harry Potter was sitting in the corner, his screams intensified now that they were not being held in by the door. His arms were wrapped around his legs, shielding his face, and he was curled in on himself, trying to appear small as possible.

'No, Uncle I'm sorry! Please, I'll be good! I promise!'

The dark-haired man crossed over to the boy, whos screams had subsided, his breaths coming in heaving gasps. At the touch from his professor, the boy flinched and screamed again.

'I swear, I'll be good next time! Uncle! NO! NO, DONT TOUCH ME! GET AWAY!'

Every student in the classroom was staring at the young boy in shock. Said boy lifted his head and gazed fearfully in front of him, revealing tear-stained cheeks and glazed eyes. The boy was either having a flashback or a panic attack, decided the Professor. Grasping the boy by his bony shoulders, he held him firmly.

'Potter, you are at Hogwarts. I am Professor Snape. You are at Hogwarts. I am Professor Snape. Where are you, Potter?'

The boys glazed eyes focused slightly.

'Hogwarts,' mumbled the boy, sounding in awe at the word.

'And who am I, Potter?'

'Uncle Vern-'

'Professor Snape.'

'Oh... Pr'fessor Snape.' The boys voice was clearer and his eyes finally locked upon the black-haired man in front of him. Standing up abruptly he yanked his eyes from his Professor and stalked out of the room, leaving the older man in an extremely undignified crouch on the floor.

'You!'

Harry had reached Draco Malfoy, who, like everyone else, was watching Potter with a mixture of confusion, fear and concern.

'You foul, worthless, death eater piece of SHIT! I hate you! I HATE YOU!'

Severus became aware of every single jar on the shelves shaking. Draco was cowering under the hate-filled gaze of the green-eyed boy. As Draco stood up straight, the jars all floated off the shelves. Then, all the desks and chairs levitated to the ceiling. The potions master was shocked by the amount of sheer power being produced by the scrawny boy in the centre of the room; he was unconscious of what he was doing, and it was wandless as well.

'Harry!' called out Hermione from the back of the room. 'Control your magic! Calm down! Amensortia! Harry, think of Amensortia!'

On Hermione's words, the glass jars lowered themselves to settle on the shelves, before Draco said, 'Good thing your girlfriend's around, eh Potter?'

_Draco, you stupid, stupid boy._

Everything exploded.

The jars on the shelves smashed in fragmented pieces, their contents spilling and mixing. The shelves dropped and cracked into slivers of wood on the floor. The chairs being levitated exploded, chunks of wood flying through the air with sawdust being scattered across the floor. Cauldrons went flying across the room, but the shield charms placed upon them all prevented the potions from spilling. Steel though they were, the desks cracked through the middle, and Snapes desk and chair vaulted across the room, where they met the wall and broke too. Every single person in the room save Draco was surrounded by a layer of green gel, and any object that came close to them bounced off to zoom away, as though repelled. Draco, being unprotected, was hit in the head by several chunks of wood, knocked off his feet by the Professors chair and was currently lying on the floor, surrounded by fragments of glass, with Harry standing over him, glaring intensely. Harry's face was bright red, in contrast to the pure white of Draco's, but suddenly Hermione Granger was right there, holding Harry's hand and coaxing it out of the fist. She was whispering hushed words to him, and Harry's face slowly turned to meet hers. She grabbed his other hand, and he visibly relaxed. A look of sorrow appeared on his face before he turned to meet his Professor, who was sitting on the ground, surrounded by glass and potions ingredients, staring at the powerful boy in front him.

'Sorry Pr'fessor,' he mumbled.

For the first time in his Hogwarts career, Severus Snape was speechless.

The green gel disappeared from everyone. Harry crossed the room, glass crunching under his feet, and grabbed his wand off of his desk. The room was silent as he grasped the wand tightly and started muttering spells.

Slowly, the chairs joined back together, and the steel frames melted back together to make normal desks. Cauldrons returned to their respective owners. Putting the shelves back up, his female counterpart took her own wand and placed them in the correct positions. She returned Snapes chair and desk to their original positions, and after several minutes of repairal, the pair crossed to the vast amount of spilled liquid and shattered glass on the floor.

'Don't bother.'

The pair glanced at the Potions Master.

'They'll all have mixed now; it will be impossible to separate every single particle,' the man said. But the two teenagers shared a look and carried on anyway.

'That's leech juice; it should go over here, in this one,' said Hermione, gesturing to a dark liquid and small jar. Her male friend pointed his wand at the liquid, followed by the jar, before saying 'Leech Juice dissociari.'

Severus watched in wonder as the dark liquid appeared in the jar and was levitated to the shelf in its original position. The two continued in this fashion until there was only a small puddle of pink, green, black and red liquids on the floor.

'Don't separate those Harry, it's a mixture of too many things.'

The young man nodded.

It was deathly silent.

'Well?' snapped their professor, now standing. 'Carry on! You have the ingredients, and I see no problem with your cauldrons. Get a move on!'

Slowly the room was filled with the sound of bubbling cauldrons, and most people managed to complete their potions with no further interruptions. When they were dismissed, the Professor called out, 'Potter, Granger, see me.'

As the class filed out, the two companions were left with the potions master, who was, contrary to his usual death glare, looking at them thoughtfully.

'50 points from Gryffindor for the disruption of my class.'

He continued to look at them thoughtfully. The two felt relieved they had gotten off so lightly, yet confused at the look the Professor was giving them.

'Miss Granger,' the Professor started. 'I recall you saying something to Mr Potter about Amensortia?'

Hermione glanced at Harry, who nodded.

'Well, you see Professor, as you discovered, Harry's magic is extremely volatile. He is very powerful; in fact, from what I've tested, the most powerful wizard Britain has seen in centuries.'

Snape nodded at her to continue.

'And, so, over the summer, Harry was getting angry, and his magic was getting out of control, a lot. But we found this form of magic, called Amensortia – have you heard of it?' When Snape shook his head, she carried on. 'It's from the 1700's. Basically, it's exercising the control of your powerful magic so that you can control it, and use the appropriate amount so you don't go exploding. It has to be imbued into someone somehow, and Harry's is weaved into his tattoos. With extensive training, you can learn to keep your magic inside you, stored safely, so that you only use it when needed. Otherwise, Harry could end up using excessive, unnecessary magic on tiny things that don't need all that energy, thus depleting his magic too quick. In short, its controlling the amount of magic you use.'

Snape was eyeing them both curiously. 'I see. And you and Mr Potter are attempting this, by yourselves?'

'Ah, well...' Hermione glanced at Harry nervously. The boy sighed.

'We tried to get Remus to help, but he didn't think we should. Ron's brother Charlie might have been able to help, but he's in Romania, and it's not like we're going to ask anyone else.'

'Not the Headmaster?' Snape raised an eyebrow. Harry left out a harsh laugh.

'Of course, I'm going to ask _Dumbledore,' _he sneered, his voice filled with contempt. 'Oh, forgive me – _Professor_ Dumbledore.'

_So, the boy wasn't happy with Dumbledore at the moment..._

'Do you mind if I see these tattoos?'

Harry stiffened. 'They're rather personal, sir.'

'That wasn't a request.' The professor's voice was cold.

Sending a glare, the young boy shook his head.

'I would rather not, sir.'

'Harry...' Hermione said warningly.

'No! I'm not showing him!'

'It's the least you can do, you impertinent boy, after trashing my classroom,' sneered the dark-haired man.

'We fixed it!'

'Remari!' shouted the professor, pointing his wand at the boy's shirt.

'Hey!' exclaimed the now shirtless boy.

Harry stood there, his hands in fists at his sides. His pale chest was remarkably strong and defined for such a short scrawny boy, but this just made the white scars that laced his chest stand out more. A thick one went from above his left nipple to just above his bellybutton, and two thin ones went from his shoulder down to his ribs, with another two short ones across his stomach. Snape struggled to keep his face blank. Could this be why the boy was scared of his uncle? No, there was a different explanation. Craning his neck, he saw the dark ink wrapped around his arm, from the shoulder down to just below his elbow. It was bits of black shadow, wisps, and the red letters spelling out _Padfoot _stood out.

_Humph. Idiot boy; a tattoo in the memory of an idiotic, reckless, stupid man who got himself killed._

'Turn,' he commanded.

Slowly, and with his fist clenched, the boy turned around, showing the professor his back.

Hardly any of the back was actually visible. Six thick lines covered his lower back, and a tattoo stretching from armpit to armpit covered the top piece. Two phoenix wings stretched out, red and yellow, framing two dark, long-lashed eyes. They stared out hauntingly at the Professor. The eyes were deep, and looked as though they had seen hardship. In fact, they were slightly haunting.

'Any more?' asked the man. Harry bit his lip, before nodding, and pulling down his trouser leg and revealing his hip. Two snakes, dark green and silver, were entwined around each other, above the flaming letters _No More Sacrifices._

_Hmm. Curious._

The boy reclothed himself.

'The tattoos had to have meaning for it to work. We figured if we work really hard, then we can get the right amount of magic stored in these in about four or five months.'

Snape nodded quietly, lost in thought.

'You know Potter,' he said suddenly. 'You truly are powerful. Both of you, in fact. With a bit of training, Miss Granger, you could be very powerful; and Potter, well, you are on the road to becoming one of the strongest wizards of all time. I myself wouldn't have been able to separate every single molecule from potions ingredients, yet you seemed to do it effortlessly. We can hardly expect you two incompetent teenagers to learn how to control such power, can we?' he glanced at their faces, and found neither were showing emotion. 'So, because I don't want the wizarding world destroyed, and you are both in need of _extreme _fine-tuning, I shall attempt to aid you in this endeavour.'

'And what makes you think we want your help?' snapped Potter.

'Harry!'

'20 points from Gryffindor. I don't care if you don't want my help; in fact, you need it. So I will again be selfless, and spend my time helping save the wizarding world.' Snape sneered at the two of them. 'Come to my office at seven o'clock tomorrow night. Tell anyone who asks you got a detention. Go.'

And the two scampered out of their potions classroom.

Later that night, Hermione was clipping Harry's hair.

'But 'Mione, he's going to spend time just insulting us!'

'He might actually help us, you never know.'

'Not bloody likely! Fuck, I need a smoke.' Harry sighed.

'Harry, you really need to quit smoking!' Hermione scolded.

'Hermione, I've been good, I only have a couple a day.'

'That's your third today.'

'So bloody what?!' Harry yelled.

'Harry James Potter, don't use that tone with me!' Hermione said, grabbed his hair and pulling it. He growled. She snipped the last bit of hair off of his ear. I'm finished.'

Harry stood up and helped her to her feet. She smiled at him.

'Mind if I sleep with you tonight?' she asked. He shook his head.

'Sure. I always seem to sleep better with you anyway.'

He grabbed a cigarette out of the packet and tapped the end, sufficiently lighting it. Harry stuck it in his mouth and took a deep drag, welcoming the nicotine into his system.

'I'll see you upstairs,' muttered Hermione. Harry just grunted. He was going to do something about the tension between him and Hermione. From the occasional hand-holding to sleeping in his bed, it seemed she might be interested too. Resolving to do something about it at a later date, he extinguished his cigarette on his knee, ignoring the slight wave of pain, and made his way up to the dorm.

Quickly getting into pyjama pants, he climbed into his bed next to Hermione, an arm around her waist, and buried his face in her neck, breathing the smell of her hair in. After several minutes, they were both asleep.

**So guys, what do you think? You'll be getting a bit of Hermione/Harry next chapter, but I'm going to take their relationship slow. Also, do you think Draco should feature in this story? And if so, as a good guy or a bad guy? Any suggestions? Thanks to sian'olivia for reviewing :)**


	3. Chapter 3

Chapter 3: Surprising discovery.

Harry woke to find himself enveloped in delicious scents. He felt warm and content, wrapped in the arms of the girl he loved. Smiling, he cast a tempus charm. It was slightly early, but as Hermione was stirring anyway, he grasped her shoulder and shook it slightly.

'Come on 'Mione,' he whispered. 'We should go to Snape we can so check our lesson tonight.' Stifling a grin at Hermione's groan, he narrowly missed the swat she sent his way. Hopping out of bed, he started to pull his clothes on, leaving Hermione a big wad of empty space. Thankfully, she got out of bed at that point.

Half an hour later the pair headed down to the great hall. They both grabbed a few pieces of jam-covered toast, eating it on the way to the dark dank office.

Hermione sent Harry a quizzical look at the door; it was open, letting several tendrils of light in. The boy shrugged, before leaning forward and pushing it open, pulling Hermione in.

'Shit!'

In front of the two teenagers was Severus Snape, shirtless, being straddled by an equally bare-chested Remus Lupin. The most disturbing part was the fact that they were... kissing.

'Shit!' repeated Harry. The two men pulled away. Both wore expressions of shock, before Remus gathered his into a happy expression and turned back to the man beneath him.

'Er, Severus you will most definitely be getting the role, thank you for practicing that scene with me, now I really must get going. Harry, Hermione,' said the werewolf, nodding to the two students before pulling his shirt back on and leaving the room.

Silence.

'What did you two want?' snapped the dark haired man.

'Er... Professor... you might want to put your shirt back on,' Hermione said timidly.

'I am aware of that Mrs Granger!' The man was now hurriedly looking for his shirt.

'Um... we were wondering if you could possibly move tonight's lesson? Because I have quidditch practice and Hermione has a lot of homework.'

Snape eyed them wearily.

'Very well. And tell no-one what you have just witnessed, or you will find yourself in a very dangerous position,' sneered the man – who had now found his shirt.

'Sir, we were wondering what we would be doing tonight, and if we would need anything,' Hermione said calmly while Harry was busy choking.

'Nothing in particular, of course your wand, and a box of Liquorice Wands each,' sneered the professor. If Hermione was surprised at the request, it didn't show.

'Thank you, Professor,' said the girl smoothly, before dragging a still choking Harry out the door.

'He – He's gay! And he's fooling around w-with LUPIN!' choked out Harry before bending to the floor and letting the tears of laughter escape.

'Yes Harry, that is all well and good, but we have to get to charms.'

'O-okay, 'Mione,' said the boy, before straightening up. They walked a few minutes until they were out of the freezing dungeons, when Harry signalled for her to stop.

_Just do it_, he thought. _Where's that Gryffindor bravery? Come on._

'Harry?' Hermione said curiously.

'Um, Hermione, I wanted to say, I just, I... oh fuck it.'

And Harry bent down slightly to push his lips against hers.

They both melted into each other's lips, before Hermione opened her mouth and started moving in harmony with Harrys.

Suddenly, the girl grasped Harry's shoulders and pushed him off of her, both gasping at the loss of contact.

'Harry,' Hermione started, before he eyes filled with tears and she took off in the direction of the charms room.

It felt as though Harry's heart had been constricted and squeezed into pieces. He watched the beautiful girl run, and thoughts rushed through his head.

_Of course she didn't want to touch you. Who would? You're a filthy murderer who taints everyone near him, a dirty worthless freak, just like what Uncle Vernon told you. You fit in no-where. Why did you attack her like that? You practically mouth-raped her._

_But she kissed back._

_Yeah, before shoving you off and running away. Good one Harry, way to fuck something good up._

Feeling the familiar hardness in his chest, he didn't even bother to fight it. Why should he? It's not like anyone ever benefitted from him being nice.

Well, he'd just act however he wanted to.

It was eleven o'clock, and Harry Potter was to be found on the astronomy tower, staring down at the ground, surrounding by cigarette butts and empty beer bottles. A blazing cigarette was in his hand when he heard a voice from behind him.

'Well well well, Mr Potter, what are you doing here?'

Harry recognised the silky voice and turned to face the tall Potions Master.

'Fuck off.'

'Excuse me?' said the voice again.

'I said, FUCK OFF!' roared the angry boy. 'As in, GO. AWAY.'

'Afraid I can't do that, Potter.'

Harry burst into tears.

The potions master stood there, in absolute shock, watching the green eyed boy completely break down.

'C-can you p-p-please just go away,' sobbed the young boy. Rolling his eyes, Severus strode forward and grasped the boy around the shoulders.

'Potter, pull yourself together!' snapped Severus. He pulled the sobbing boy to his feet and started walking off, dragging the young boy with him.

'LET GO OF ME!' yelled Harry, writhing and attempting to free himself of his professor's grip.

Before he knew it they had reached a room with a silver snake for a lock in front of it. Snape muttered the password under his breath and pulled the boy into the room.

A black carpet covered the floor, and dark red couches and armchairs were arranged around a blazing fire. Black walls that turned silver when caught in the light were bare, but the cluttered desk and coffee table made up for it. Two doors on the walls were shut. Harry was shoved onto the closest couch while Snape stalked into one of rooms that led off. It must have been a potions store-room, because he came back holding three vials.

'Honestly Potter, three weeks into the term and you've already had two break-downs. Perfect.'

Harry growled at the man, who shoved a vial of green liquid into his hands.

'Drink,' he commanded. 'It's a calming draught.'

'I don't need one,' snarled Harry.

'Temper, temper, Potter,' mocked the tall man. 'Drink it, or I will make you. Yes, good boy. Now this. It's a mild head-ache solution. I'm sure you'll have one after that outburst. And after that, this one, it will sober you up.'

Nodding, the boy gulped down the vials. Snape smirked internally; let the fun begin.

'Now Potter. What is my name?'

'Severus Snape,' the boy replied immediately. His eyes widened. 'I didn't mean to say that!'

'What school do you go to?' the smirking man asked.

'Hogwarts... Y-you put Veritaserum in here!' He gasped, glaring at the professor in hatred.

'Indeed I did, Potter.' The professor sneered at the student. 'Now, what caused your mental breakdown up on the astronomy tower?'

'Hermione... rejected me.' He ground the words out, attempting to stop his mouth spilling too much information.

'And why, Mr Potter, would she do that?' Snape asked smoothly, enjoying the boys face contort as he attempted to fight the potion. He didn't have a chance; it was a brew Snape had made himself, oblivious to the most powerful wizard. The boy was putting up a good fight though.

'Because she doesn't want me.' The boy gritted out through clenched teeth.

'My, Potter, you are doing extraordinarily well. Very evasive. And why wouldn't she want you?' The potions master was gleeful. Dragging this out was very enjoyable indeed.

'Because I'm a freak.'

Severus smirked at the young boy, but inside was slightly shocked.

'Where did you get the alcohol?'

'It's in my room. I brought it here.'

'And did you bring anything else?'

'Yes.'

'What did you bring?'

'A lot of things, sir,' smirked the boy. 'My books, my ink, my parchment – would you like me to list everything?'

'Allow me to rephrase, Mr Potter. Did you bring any other harmful substances?'

'I don't believe any of them are harmful.'

'Are you in possession of any more drugs, alcohol or cigarettes?' Snape was getting rather frustrated.

'Yes.'

'Which ones?'

'All.'

'Be specific.'

'I have drugs, alcohol and cigarettes.'

Severus grits his teeth in anger. 'Be. Specific. Where did you get these?'

'I have heroin, a lot of muggle vodka, and a few bottles of firewhiskey. I'm out of cigarettes. I got the firewhiskey from Hogsmeade, and brought the rest from summer.'

'And how did you get the firewhiskey?'

'There are benefits to being the boy who lived, sir.'

'Are you addicted to any of these substances?'

'Only the smokes.'

'How did you get acquainted with these substances?'

'Over the summer, I met some people, and I started hanging out with them and doing this stuff with them. They're muggles.'

'Why?'

'It was an escape, sir. I could forget my life and have fun for a while.'

'And what did 'having fun' entail?'

'Going to the beach to get high, smoke, drink and fuck.'

Snape grimaced. Dirty teenagers.

'What were you attempting to escape from?'

'My relatives.'

'Why?'

'They hate me.'

'Why are you scared of the cupboard?'

The boy stiffened. Obviously a sore spot.

'The cupboard brings back... unpleasant memories.'

'Memories of what?'

'When I was younger... before I found out I was a wizard... I lived in the cupboard under the stairs.'

Snape was silent. The wizarding world's saviour, living in a cupboard for ten years?

'And how did you get the marks on your back?'

Snape heard a choking sound. The boy's eyes were bulging; he had his fist in his mouth. He choked out the answer; however he made it so that Snape couldn't hear it.

'Repeat that, Potter.'

'Mncl.'

'Excuse me?'

'My uncle!' growled the boy.

Snape sat in silence. Surely not. The boy was lying; he must be. But Snape had a feeling at the back of his mind that he wasn't.

'And why did you not stop him? You are clearly adept at wandless magic.'

Silence.

'Mr Potter?'

'I couldn't.'

Snape looked at him rather disbelievingly.

'Why not?'

'The Veritaserum has worn off, sir.'

Snape swore.

'Very well Potter. 50 points from Gryffindor and a week of detention, for smuggling substances into Hogwarts, using those substances at Hogwarts as well as being out after curfew. Be very grateful I am not taking this to the headmaster. And I will be collecting these substances at the first opportunity I get.'

Harry nodded stiffly, before rising and heading to the door. With a flick of his hand, Snape locked it.

'And where do you think you're going?' Snape asked.

'Back to Gryffindor Tower, sir,' mumbled Harry.

'I don't think so. It is after curfew.'

'Well where am I supposed to bloody sleep then?!' asked Harry in exasperation.

'5 points from Gryffindor for language, Potter. You will sleep on my couch. Hurry up, I am tired and prefer sleeping to spending the night bickering with you,' snarled the Potions Master.

Incredulous, Harry walked to the couch. He lay down on it, still staring suspiciously at the Professor.

'I really do hate you, sir.'

'Mutual, Potter. Hurry up and sleep.'

After grudgingly conjuring a small fluffy blanket, the Professor left for his own room, leaving a stunned yet fatigued Harry Potter on his couch.

Harry was walking through the forbidden forest, his eyes fixed on a tree. The tree had narrow red eyes staring out of them; the hate-filled eyes of Voldemort. They watched him hungrily as he drew nearer, his legs moving without his consent.

The area transformed into the department of mysteries. Sirius was falling into the veil, his eyes staring at Harry, full of hate. He lifted his finger to point accusingly at Harry, before the veil swallowed him.

'POTTER!'

Harry woke to find himself screaming, drenched in sweat. He calmed down to find Snape next to him, wrapped in a bath robe.

'Sorry,' he mumbled. 'Nightmare. Forgot to put the silencing charm up.'

'It is unfortunate I am out of dreamless sleep, Potter; I am not happy being woken up. Off to sleep with you.'

Harry woke up screaming twice more that night. Snape seemed very tired the third time, so despite being four in the morning, he stayed up, staring at the ceiling, instead of letting himself fall into the restless abyss that was sleep.

Around about six in the morning, Harry was lying on the couch, covered with the blanket and staring up at the ceiling.

_This really isn't what you'd expect Snapes quarters to look like, _he mused. _No bats hanging from the ceiling, no torture instruments... it's kinda nice._

Harry's eyes were just closing when the door flicked open and someone came in. A very tall, blonde person.

'Malfoy,' said Harry coolly.

Malfoy just looked at him like he'd grown wings.

'What the fuck are you doing here?' he cried. Not waiting for an answer, they tall boy stalked over to one of the rooms and rapped on the door.

'Sev?' he yelled. 'Sev, why the fuck is Harry Potter on your couch?'

Draco was only met with a groan.

'Sev! Wake up! You have a crisis!'

'Draco you insolent brat, be patient for once in your life!'

Draco huffed, before turning to face Harry, who had lain back down and was staring at the ceiling.

'What are you doing here?'

'Oh, just giving Sev sexual favours in return for good potions marks, you know,' said Harry airily. Draco paled dramatically.

'W- what?' he stammered. He was met with a chuckle.

'I'm kidding, god. Why are _you_ here?'

'If you must know, I'm visiting my godfather to talk about matters that do- hey, you didn't answer my question!' Draco cried indignantly.

'And I'm not going to. So if you don't mind, goodbye.' Harry stood up to go to the door, folding the blanket and placing it on the couch.

'What? No way, Potter. Get your ass over here!' growled Draco.

Harry raised an eyebrow. 'And since when did you think I was going to listen to you, ferret?'

'Since now,' intoned the voice of Severus Snape. Harry groaned.

'Draco, as you seem so very curious to know, I met Mr Potter out for a late night, individual party. Would you be so kind as to accompany him back to the astronomy tower to clean up his mess? Do not let him keep anything.'

'Why of course,' Draco said graciously. Then in a sharper tone, 'Come along, Potter.'

Draco whistled.

'Someone's a bit of a heavy drinker. And what's this, Muggle cigarettes? How the mighty have fallen,' mocked Draco.

'Shut up, Malfoy,' growled Harry. 'At least I'm not a lightweight.' He waved his wand and muttered several spells. The mess was gone, excluding the dark red stain on the wall. Harry wasn't about to tell Draco it was from him though.

'Now you can fuck off, okay? Just leave me the fuck alone.'

'Tut, tut,' drawled Malfoy. 'I shall be a gentleman and escort you to breakfast.'

Harry scowled, but Draco smirked at him and pulled him to the great hall.


End file.
